Today, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the successful conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations. This agreement has been reached almost 28 years to the day after Canada concluded our first-ever free-trade agreement with another country, the United States. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is the largest free-trade agreement in history, represented by a 12-nation market of nearly 800 million customers

The Prime Minister announced that a re-elected Conservative Government would ratify and implement this historic agreement. He noted that, as with all trade agreements, TPP would be subject to full Parliamentary review and approval before it is passed and brought into force.

“In a global economy, there is no more certain way to secure long-term economic growth and prosperity and to protect and create good, well-paying jobs for Canadians than by expanding markets for job-creating Canadian businesses,” the Prime Minister said.

· The Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement will protect and create Canadian jobs, and grow every sector of our economy by giving Canadian businesses access to some of the most dynamic markets in the world.

· Canada will now be the only G7 nation with free trade access to all of the US and Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific continents – that’s over 60% of the world’s economy.

· Our 11 partner countries have a combined GDP of nearly $30 trillion – that’s 14 times the size of the Canadian economy.

· The TPP gives us access to new markets where we don’t currently have free-trade agreements – like Japan, the world’s 3rd largest economy – and it strengthens our partnership with our NAFTA partners.

· Every sector and region of the Canadian economy will benefit from the TPP, including the auto sector, agriculture, and our supply-managed agricultural sectors.

· With the successful conclusion of TPP, our Conservative Government has increased Canadian free-trade agreements from five to 51 countries.

· More than one in five Canadian jobs is linked directly to exports.

“Unlike the Liberals who have almost no record on trade, or the NDP who have vowed to rip up the deal, Conservatives know that Canadian exporters can compete with the best the world has to offer, and win,” the Prime Minister said. “Canada’s Conservative governments have created virtually all of Canada’s free-trade access to the world and we will continue to open up new markets for Canadian businesses and workers.”